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Rhode Island FC Crush USL Championship Leaders

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Rhode Island FC Crush USL Championship Leaders


I have absolutely zero complaints about Rhode Island FC tonight. They went to the home of the league leaders –Louisville City FC – who prior to tonight had scored 40 goals and allowed just 15 in 15 matches, and drubbed them by a score of 5-2.

Not once during the 90 minutes plus stoppage time did they ever look like losing, nor even drawing. Rhode Island FC’s second win of the season coincided with the first time it has scored more than twice, and every single player looked to be firing on all cylinders. The Draw Kings are dead.

The trouble for Louisville began in the 30th minute as RIFC defender Stephen Turnbull laid a pass off to RIFC midfielder Clay Holstad well away from Louisville’s goal. Holstad had taken several long shots this season, and they had all rattled the woodwork at best.

This one did not. Well, it did. Twice, actually, before ricocheting into the back of the net for what is likely the goal of the season. There was nothing anyone could do to stop it. Keep an eye on SportsCenter’s Top 10 this week and you may well see it.

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RIFC winger Jojea Kwizera added his first ever RIFC goal in first half stoppage time on a second assist from Turnbull as Kwizera fired the ball past Louisville goalkeeper Damian Las from a tight angle to make it 2-0 going into the break.

The bloodletting continued in the 67th minute as RIFC striker JJ Williams — who had missed what should have been an easy goal earlier in the night — received a pass into the box from RIFC winger Noah Fuson who came in off the bench and chipped it over Louisville’s Las at close range to make it 3-0 giving Rhode Island their first ever three goal lead and the first time they had scored three goals ever.

Louisville City FC — who average nearly three goals a match — attempted to clamber back into this one in the 85th as midfielder Dylan Mares was played on over the top by Louisville midfielder Taylor Davila. Mares took a fake shot that made a Rhode Island defender miss and then he fired the ball past RIFC goalkeeper Jackson Lee for the first time in the game. Lee made 8 saves on 29 total shots against Louisville, many of them quite difficult.

Fuson didn’t let Louisville keep their hope very long though. As regulation ended and nine minutes of stoppage time were added on by the officials, he burst down Louisville’s right side and beat two defenders to chip goalkeeper Las once again.

This goal will not be without controversy, a third Louisville defender attempted to clear the shot before it crossed the goal line. Although the officials ruled it a goal, the television angles were inconclusive and the Louisville fans let the referees feel their ire with chants of “ref you suck”.

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Louisville clawed yet another goal back in the 5th minute of second-half stoppage time as defender Jake Morris banged a free kick off the wall and past the outstretched Lee to make it 4-2. Lee may beat himself up for his inability to stop Louisville’s two goals tonight, but in my opinion he made many more class saves and is as responsible as RIFC’s goalkeepers for their shocking win.

Finally, Rhode Island midfielder Isaac Angking delivered the coup de grace as fellow RIFC midfielder Joe Brito played him brilliantly in on goal and Angking, who was one-on-one with Las, calmly slotted it past him only 58 seconds after Morris’s goal. The resulting 5-2 scoreline is the largest win Rhode Island has earned this season and Louisville’s largest defeat. It is also the first time Louisville have dropped points at home this season as RIFC have now picked up four points across two matches against the league leaders.

Statistically, the game was as lopsided as the scoreline suggests but in the opposite direction. I mentioned that Louisville took 29 shots (10 on target). RIFC took only 11, with 6 on target, although they certainly made theirs count.

Possession was as disparate, 64%-36% in Louisville’s favor, with the home team also outpassing RIFC 416-254, and more accurately at 87%-70%. Finally, Louisville City FC won a stunning 13 corners. RIFC won zero.

None of that mattered, as Rhode Island FC took virtually all of their chances for the first time in team history, and Jackson Lee put in the best performance by an RIFC goalkeeper on the season.

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Rhode Island FC will ride the high of their 5-2 victory into their next match, which will be their first at home after two-and-a-half weeks away, on Wednesday, June 26th, at 7:30 pm ET, as they take on El Paso Locomotive FC at Beirne Stadium.



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Where to go for the Patriots game? Try these 12 RI sports bars

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Where to go for the Patriots game? Try these 12 RI sports bars


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  • Featured locations are spread across Providence, East Greenwich, Warren, Newport, Middletown, Lincoln, and Warwick.
  • Many of the establishments offer large screens, local beers, and classic pub food for game days.

Let’s face it, any restaurant or bar with a seat or stool facing a TV can be the sports bar you need when a big game is on. Combine a cold beverage, pizza, wings or pub food with like-minded fellow fans and you have the happening atmosphere for a football playoff game.

New England Patriots fans have had a drought that left us hungry and thirsty for January football. It’s time to enjoy the ride again when the Pats face the Houston Texans on Sunday.

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That means it’s time to dust off the list of our favorite sports bars and to update it with some new spots that have opened, including breweries, since the last Super Bowl win in 2019.

You’ll find good vibes at these 12 spots around Rhode Island.

Go Pats!

Track 15 food hall, 1 Union Station in downtown Providence, serves up big screens and food from seven restaurants for game day.

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Sports & Leisure, 219 Main St., East Greenwich, is a fun sports bar with elevated cuisine from their from-scratch kitchen, ranging from pizza to Cubano sandwiches.

Narragansett Brewery, 271 Tockwotton St., Providence, has all the local beer, bites and TVs for a fun time. Bonus: water views.  

Newport Craft, 293 JT Connell Highway, Newport, has big screens in their taproom, local beer and Wally’s Wieners food.

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J.T. Commons, 1037 Aquidneck Ave., Middletown, has a square bar with plenty of TVs for viewing, pizza (including gluten-free) and wings for a fun game day hang.

Varsity Luxury Sports Bar, 289 Atwells Ave., Providence, offers game day food and drink and promises an event for every game day.

At Bally’s Lincoln, Wicked Good Bar & Grill, 100 Twin River Road, Lincoln, is a great place to watch a game, from the comfortable seating at the bar to the excellent sound system.

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Snooker’s, 53 Ashburton St., Providence, has all the TVs, space, plus food and drink for game days.

The GPub, 61 Orange St., Providence, (401) 632-4782, often offers chances to win swag during games while you dine on their gastropub menu.

Moonshine Alley, 52 Pine St., Providence, features a 15-foot screen so you won’t miss a play while enjoying the authentic Nashville vibe.  

The Rally Sports Bar & Grille, 1800 Post Road, Warwick, always has the game on and the food and drink ready.

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Tickets Restaurant, 15 Aquidneck Ave., Middletown, pledges to be the best place to watch sports on Aquidneck Island.



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CRMC asks RI Superior Court to force Quidnessett Country Club to take down rock wall

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CRMC asks RI Superior Court to force Quidnessett Country Club to take down rock wall


The Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) filed a counterclaim against Quidnessett Country Club in Providence County Superior Court Tuesday. It wants a judge to force the North Kingstown country club to remove the 600-foot stone wall built without permission roughly three years ago.



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Why a Taylor Swift wedding might shut down Westerly streets

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Why a Taylor Swift wedding might shut down Westerly streets


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  • The potential wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, presents a significant logistical challenge.
  • Transporting celebrity guests would likely occur in three phases: from airports, to wedding events, and back to airports.
  • A large, out-of-state limousine company would probably be needed to handle the transportation for the high-profile event.
  • Using large coach buses would be necessary to move guests to wedding activities and ease traffic in the small village.

As Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce eye possibly getting married at her Watch Hill, Rhode Island, mansion, The Providence Journal is surveying various wedding vendors about what it would take for the Ocean State to host a wedding befitting the most popular woman in the world.

Imagine a crowd of A-list celebrities descending on the village of Watch Hill in Westerly this summer to attend the wedding of mega celebrity Taylor Swift and football star Travis Kelce.

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To Chuck O’Koomian, who owns Airline Express Limousine and Car Service with his wife Ginny Cauley, it’s like a scene out of a horror movie.

“It’s gonna be a logistical nightmare,” O’Koomian told The Providence Journal.

How will guests arrive at Taylor Swift’s wedding in Westerly?

While Swift has not announced when or where her wedding will be, O’Koomian talked about what would be involved in getting a large celebrity crowd to the wedding, if it were held at her Bluff Avenue mansion, the nearby Ocean House resort or the Watch Hill Chapel, where Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo tied the know with football player Christian McCaffrey in 2024.

O’Koomian, who has provided transportation for comedian Jay Leno, who has a home in Newport, said there would be three distinct phases of ground transportation:

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  1. Getting people from airports to their hotels
  2. Getting people from their hotels to the wedding activities
  3. Getting them back to the airports

The middle phase, delivering people to wedding activities, very well may not be just a one-day affair. Many say Swift won’t have a wedding day; they’re expecting a wedding week.

While some guests, especially those in New York or Connecticut, would probably just have their drivers bring them to Westerly, others would fly in by private jets, probably landing at Westerly State Airport or Quonset State Airport, whose military runway is long enough to handle larger jets. From there, guests would need a ride to where they are staying.

What Westerly residents have to say

Folks in Westerly have surmised that, even if it’s not the site of the ceremony or reception, the Ocean House, along with its sister property the Weekapaug Inn, plus several rented, private mansions would be needed to accommodate guests.

O’Koomian expects that a large limousine company – such as Boston Corporate Coach or Carey Limousine, in Massachusetts, or Hy’s Limousine, in Connecticut – with more than 120 cars each, would get the contract to serve Taylor Swift’s wedding. “There’s not even 120 cars in Rhode Island, all the companies combined,” he said, adding that, as a subcontractor, he would hope to get a piece of the business.

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Could a fleet of private cars filled with stars snarl traffic in Westerly?

This first phase of local transportation would involve many trips of smaller parties. “They may come in two, three, four at a time,” he said.

While that is suitable for limousine service, getting from hotels to the ceremony, reception and other events, would require a different strategy for that second phase. “It’s like they’re transporting a football team,” he said.

That would mean “coaches,” the upscale version of buses. They would ease the traffic burden that would be created by limousines ferrying some 300 wedding guests around the tiny village of Watch Hill.

“It’s gonna take a lot of coordination if it’s Westerly,” O’Koomian said. “They’re going to have to shut down half the city. Police would have to shut down streets.”



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